Fifty employees at the Sobeys-run Winnipeg cheese and ice cream operations plant will lose their jobs this summer.
The union representing the workers, Unifor Local 468, was informed of the decision on Monday.
“It’s always disappointing to learn about layoffs in the name of cost-cutting at a profitable firm like Sobeys,” said Scott Doherty, Unifor’s western director.
The Lucerne Foods plant will close August 29 — a casualty of the takeover of Safeway by Sobeys last year.
Mark Armstrong, president of Local 468, says their members are shocked, and the decision contradicts Sobeys’ earlier statement regarding job security.
“We’re all quite saddened,” Armstrong said.
The Lucerne brand of dairy products will remain in Safeway stores and be produced out of an Edmonton plant.
